For those who've done DCL & another cruise line

[KeithOP]

Originally Posted by Gill H

Interesting. I have only done one cruise - 7 nights round the Med in September on the Magic. We didn’t see many kids around, the adults only places were quiet and we found it perfect for two adults without children.

It felt like being on a glamorous luxury liner, we enjoyed every minute. Experiences such as Animators’ Palate where our own drawings danced with classic Disney characters are hard to beat. And Palo brunch and dinner were superb.

I guess the time of year and type of cruise may make a difference.

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I always sound so down about DCL when I say this but I dont mean it to sound that way. We loved it BUT in terms of kids, we heard them running and shouting outside our room all the time. Despite the later dining seating, it was again very noisy. Sure Animators palate was clever but it wasn't the superb dining experience we were expecting and perhaps that's our own fault for expecting too much! We would rather have not had the clever drawing thing and had a lower volume restaurant experience.

Of course Palo and Remy were superb.

[Bozza]

We've just arrived home after three weeks in and around Orlando, including a 4-night on the Dream which I only booked a few weeks before we went.

Because we'd already done 12 Disney Days (10 nights at the Beach Club and 2 at the Animal Kingdom Lodge) we didn't bother with any character stuff on board. We also didn't bother with any of the shows - it was our third DCL cruise and we think we'd seen them before.

I've always been reluctant to try another cruise line because our DCL experiences have just been so good and, in particular, the kids' clubs are fantastic. I've heard that other cruise lines just don't come close to Disney in that regard. On this most recent cruise we (me, my partner and our 9-y-o) would be in bed around midnight and my 16-y-o would creep in from Vibe around 2am, having had an amazing time with new friends.

But they are unquestionably VERY expensive. Just checking my credit card now, I paid £3,720.22 for the 4 nights. This was for a stateroom with verandah (which we always have) and as it was late on we got a "guaranteed" room which meant we couldn't choose our precise room, just category, and this saved us around $1,000 compared to choosing.

I'd certainly consider other cruise lines now, for the price reason, but I'd need to do research on kid options first in order to know that there will be good options for them.

[KeithOP]

yeah I hear that for sure

We won't be taking any kids so for us, the kid facilities don't matter at all and we're just talking purely adult indulgence

[Bozza]

Originally Posted by KeithOP

yeah I hear that for sure

We won't be taking any kids so for us, the kid facilities don't matter at all and we're just talking purely adult indulgence

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Because our 9-y-o and 16-y-o loved their respective areas so much we did have a bit of "adult only" time and spent a couple of hours in the various bars in The District one evening and the places were deserted. Maybe we were just unlucky and/or just earlier than the main crowds - second dining was going on, as was the late show - but it made the whole place lacking any real atmosphere, which was a shame.

[KeithOP]

Originally Posted by Bozza

Because our 9-y-o and 16-y-o loved their respective areas so much we did have a bit of "adult only" time and spent a couple of hours in the various bars in The District one evening and the places were deserted. Maybe we were just unlucky and/or just earlier than the main crowds - second dining was going on, as was the late show - but it made the whole place lacking any real atmosphere, which was a shame.

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yeah we saw that too. It was weird because sometimes they seemed to schedule little events in the bars which were going on at the same time as shows so no one could get to them.

We did do a 30 min 80s quiz which was actually brilliant fun. So there's potential but only as you say if there's something going on

[Bats]

Originally Posted by KeithOP

Can I ask what they didn't like about RC and what you didnt like about cunard (as we were thinking of a cunard for "ultimate old school luxury" but then we've not read any reviews yet)

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So Cunard for us was like being on the Titanic with the class system. We truly felt that we would be treated better the more money we spent on cabins/dinings etc. Don't get me wrong, no crew member was rude or anything, but there was so much we weren't allowed to go and places we couldn't eat at because we had the cheapest cabin - it really felt snotty. I like DCL because whether I'm sailing concierge or cheapest cabins, I get treated exactly the same way and I can eat in the same restaurants as everyone else.

My parents hated RC because of the food. My dad does not do well with food (long story, won't bore you), so one evening, when there was nothing on the menu he could eat, he asked for an omelette and chips (chips were on the menu). The server went to the kitchen, came back and said they couldn't do it as they didn't have the equipment. Right?
So, it was that and the upsell of everything they disliked.

Other people love it, so get a wide spectrum of views and give a new cruiseline a go. Worse case scenario is that you have an ok time but choose not to return with them. Best scenario is you love it!

Bear in mind that my parents don't do the ice skating/surfing stuff - so you may love that part of it.

Joa

[Bats]

Originally Posted by KeithOP

yeah I hear that for sure

We won't be taking any kids so for us, the kid facilities don't matter at all and we're just talking purely adult indulgence

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My sister likes Celebrity for adult cruising. I guess it helps that she can get an alcohol package as she's a bit of a lush!

[duchy]

Originally Posted by KeithOP

Thanks everyone that's really useful. I guess the answer is, it's a very personal decision but it's hard to know having only been on one

We dont do the disney characters so in a way RCL or Celebrity may well be a better choice for the price.

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I have American friends who are Disneyfiles (three generations now) and recently retired, choosing a town in Florida in part for ease of getting to all the different cruise ports (they average four or five a year plus trips to Disney for the grandkids.)
They still occasionally use DCL (when they started cruising it was always DCL) but now it's rare and usually only when they are taking the youngest grandkids. They speak very highly of Celebrity and like NCL too. They give us pitying looks when we choose Carnival

[Licoricelover]

We first cruised with carnival about 25 years ago. Went up to New Orleans which was brilliant but we really didn’t take to the ship and it put us off for 15 years.
Then booked a dcl cruise on the Magic and was completely hooked. Have booked every year since.
This year we went with Cunard. It was the only one for our dates going from Southampton. Really thought I’d made a big mistake as it seemed so formal but we actually enjoyed it and have booked again for next year. (Def. older cruisers) Thought the dressing up would be really ‘not our thing’ but it was fine. We did find there were a lot who seemed to live on the ship had their set places and spent the whole time telling people how many cruises they had been on. Definitely a lot of one upmanship, but we did find plenty of normal people to talk to.
Several people have said celebrity so may try that next.
They all seem so different.

[Floridag1rl]

We have never cruised with DCL but we have cruised with Holland America, Royal Caribbean, P&O, Costa, and MSC. We prefer P&O, we don't have any small or teenage children they are now in their twenties and prefer to go on holiday on their own with friends now. As a family though we have been cruising , Royal Caribbean cater for families with wonderful facilities especially on board their massive ships. The food isn't good though so it has put us off going with them for the time being. Holland America are very good but lack in the entertainment. We keep booking with P&O, great ships, great food Englis £ on board ship and big staterooms compared to other cruise lines. Costa were very good but English isn't their first language which is frustrating same with MSC. I currently have two cruises booked one on the P&O Iona to the Ffords and one on the Azura to the Caribbean. I like the fact that P&O start their cruises in Barbados and not Florida.